Magnitude 6.9 quake off Philippine coast

A strong earthquake of magnitude 6.9 struck in the ocean off the east coast of the Philippines on Monday night, but so far there have been no reports of damage, officials said.

The quake, which struck at 10:11pm local time (2.11pm GMT), was centred about 175 kilometres east-southeast of Pandan, Catanduanes in the central Philippines at a depth of 24.2 kilometres, according to the US Geological Survey.

In an earlier report, the USGS said the earthquake was magnitude 7.0. and its depth was 33 kilometres.

"We have not received reports of damage, but we are still checking," said Ed Laguerta, chief vulcanologist in the central Bicol region.

"We have advised officials to watch out for waves along coastal areas, but there is no tsunami warning."

The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said a Pacific-wide tsunami was not expected, but it noted that earthquakes of this size sometimes generate local tsunamis that affect areas within 100 kilometres of the epicentre. (Reuters)